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Copa del Rey Odds: Sociead in Tough vs Barca

Don Aguero

by Don Aguero in News

Updated Jan 17, 2018 · 9:39 AM PST

Barcelona (-400) vs. Real Sociedad (+1300), Draw (+700)

Real Sociedad have a tough path forward in the Copa del Rey after losing the first leg of the quarterfinals to Barcelona, 1-0. When the two meet again on Thursday, January 26th, at Camp Nou, “La Real” will need nothing less than a win in order to progress.

Barcelona finally managed to end their astonishing ten-year winless run at Anoeta Stadium with the scrappy victory. Both sides looked uneasy throughout the game, failing to settle into a rhythm and giving up possession far too easily. It took a penalty in the 21st minute from Neymar to open the scoring, and neither side looked too threatening after that.

Barca seemed uncharacteristically shaky in possession. Ivan Rakitic was not the usual steady force in the midfield but the slack was picked up by Sergio Busquets, who had close to a flawless game. The young Samuel Umtiti was targeted as a weak point in the Barca defense, and Real Sociedad exploited the left back throughout the game. La Real were given their fair share of opportunities but failed to cash in.

At the end of the day, regardless of how they played, it was still a win for Barcelona. They have finally broken the curse and are in great standing for the cup after Real Madrid’s shock loss to Celta Vigo in the first leg of their own quarterfinal.

Heading into Thursday’s match, Barcelona’s main concern will be the fitness of Andres Iniesta. The star midfielder was injured during the game and is still facing issues with his calf. Andre Gomes replaced him at half-time and did a great job. But anytime Iniesta is injured, Barcelona is weakened.

While La Real were competitive against an underperforming Barca side in the opener, it’s always a different story when Barcelona take to Camp Nou. Sociedad should not expect the same inconsistent side that they saw at Anoeta Stadium.

The pressure will be on Sociedad to press forward. Even a 1-0 win against Barca at their homeground will not be enough to guarantee their survival. That’s a hefty challenge for any team in the world right now and, from what we’ve seen of Real Sociedad, they’re not the side to pull it off.

Pick: Barcelona (-400)


Photo credit: “Messi” by Carlos RM, CC BY-SA 2.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0], via Flickr.

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